The undisputed pioneer of the horror, detective and science-fiction genres, Edgar Allan Poe was an accomplished poet as well as a celebrated writer of short stories. The present edition contains all of his works in verse, from the major poems of his maturity - such as his famous ballads 'The Raven' and 'Lenore' - to those he published in his youth and those that were collected immediately after his premature death in 1849.

Also included in this volume is a selection of Poe's essays on poetical composition and prosody, revealing that poetry was at the core of the American master's vision of literature - something also demonstrated by the significant and enduring body of work he left behind in this field.

Born in Boston, Edgar Allan Poe (1809-49) was brought up by the Allan merchant family after the death of his mother and being abandoned by his father. While studying at the University of Virginia he started self-publishing volumes of poetry, and after a stint in the military began writing essays and fiction for a living. He died of unknown causes - with rabies, cholera, alcoholism and tuberculosis among the hypotheses - in Baltimore.